Government is not Americans' enemy

Published 4:31 pm, Friday, November 25, 2011

To the editor:

A chance to look at the house my grandfather lived in, with his seven children, led me to ask the question: "Why did he leave the old country with such a large family, to come to America?" I also asked: "How did he get the money to buy his house?" The inescapable conclusion was that he skimped and saved in the old country to get the down payment for the house. He was a mason and lived a modest life, but he was willing to come to this country so that his children could enjoy a higher standard of living; which they did, all seven of them.

My third generation brother and I have achieved through hard work and perseverance. But I often remember that he and I would still be living in abject poverty if my grandfather had not come to this country.

We had a president say, "government is the problem." My grandfather came to this country because the government in the old country did not look out for his interests and neither did the wealthy who owned the entire country. He expected and received help from government here to increase his standard of living.

The tragedy of our times is that the sons and daughters of immigrants have forgotten the sacrifices of their ancestors and have turned against their government, a government that is the envy of the world and has given the oversight and investment in the nation that has produced the highest standard of living the world has ever known.

As a nation, we watch and applaud the popular uprisings in countries such as Egypt, Libya and Syria; commenting that we are witness to democracy in action. We are happy to see "unjust" governments overthrown and the balance of power restored to the people.

Yet, when some of our number take to the streets and squares in peaceful protest here at home, we see them doused with pepper spray and rousted by armed police in the middle of the night. They are branded as "anti-social" and "extremists" and quickly subdued to ensure the balance of power remains squarely with the status quo.

Has there ever been a government more out of touch with its electorate in all of America's history? Are we not as dissatisfied, as a people, as those populations abroad?

Until greater numbers, not less, take to the streets to promote change and restore a semblance of democracy in this country then we are all lost.

The apathy which has allowed our politicians to take us to the brink of bankruptcy, both morally and financially, can only be overcome by action. By we, the people.

The likelihood of reaching a fair compromise in the Super Committee would have been far greater if the Democratic congressional leaders had chosen the Republicans for the committee and the Republicans had chosen the Democrats, perhaps with some limitations.

Instead, the leaders chose members most loyal to their own cause, which, unfortunately, is much closer to extreme liberal and conservative positions than most Americans. The members had no history of or interest in compromising, thus insuring a deadlock from the start. What a disservice to the people!

Wouldn't it be wonderful if Obama and the congressional leaders gave us an early Christmas present by appointing a new Super Committee of congressmen genuinely dedicated to compromise?

At the very least, we desperately need gradual reform of the tax code and gradual reductions in future benefits for government employees. We could start by redefining capital gains, and we should end pension indexing for inflation, a benefit not available in the private sector.